So far we have chartered
the history since the formation of the club, up until the
end of the 84/85 season.

We would be grateful to
anyone who can add to anything written here. Apart from
pointing out any inaccuracies, we would be pleased to
receive contributions so that this history can be
"fleshed out" even more. For that reason, the
details on this page are likely to be changed as more
information is unearthed.

At the start of the
85/86 season Barnet were still plagued by injuries -
despite making new signings over the summer, including
Dave Sansom who was the younger brother of Kenny - a
favourite at Arsenal. This was not helped by a pre-season
friendly with Harrow, who had resorted to hacking as a
tactic, leading to three Barnet players being stretchered
off.

Maidstone visited
Underhill fairly soon in the season, and it took a Nicky
Evans hat-trick to end the game 3-3. Then Barnet were
drawn against Enfield in the FA Cup. The 7-0 drubbing
dampened the enthusiasm that had been building up. This
was followed by another four goals being conceded at
Nuneaton.

Then Barry Fry had his
first fall out with Stan Flashman - which is some going
given that he was not even employed by him at the time!
Barry had only been offered instalments to pay back the
loan that he had raised to save the club the year before
and was threatening court action.

The ensuing argument
resulted in him being banned from Underhill for an
indefinite period. This unfortunately coincided with a
benefit match that had been arranged for ex-player -
Steve Brinkman - who had recently suffered a career
ending heart attack. Barry had to miss the match where
Barnet Present played Barnet Past.

Meanwhile, Barnet's form
in the league was not good, especially at home. The last
straw for Flashman was a 1-0 home defeat by Wycombe in
the FA Trophy, just before Christmas. Flashman went
straight to the dressing room and dismissed Thompson.

This was, perhaps,
somewhat unfair as Barnet had a fairly comfortable
mid-table position and there were more injuries than
usual. Perhaps the crowd chanting "Thompson
Out" during the game had influenced Flashman. But
any chairman or manager can tell you that these chants
occur every now and then...

Defender, Don
McAllister, who had been brought in from Spurs by
Thompson, was put in charge. The new manager could not
prevent Barnet slipping towards the relegation zone, yet
again. Consolation was to be had in the Herts Senior Cup.
Barnet beat Stevenage in the final, 4-0.

Barnet finished the
season with four straight victories and reached the dizzy
heights of 14th. (They were only five points clear of
relegation, however!) Meanwhile, Barry Fry's Maidstone
were struggling, and only avoided the drop on goal
difference. Wondering why they were at that end of the
table, instead of the other, the Maidstone chairman
sacked him.

Players of the Year -
Nicky Evans and Steve Humphries.

The Return of Fry

On May 27 1986 Stan
Flashman announced: "Barry's the best for the job.
The problems (their financial dispute) are in the
past." Barry responded with "I'm excited and
it's nice to be home again. After six years there, Barnet
is still in my blood and I have a great love for the
club. I'm as ambitious as Stan. The club is ready for
league football. I'll give the job one hundred per
cent."

This seemed a little
strange. Fry had spent five seasons at Barnet building
squads that spent most of their time in or near the
relegation zone. Maidstone had won the league a few years
back, but with Barry they had an uncomfortable taste of
relegation battle. Flashman was not a patient man; he had
already got through two managers. He expected immediate
results and did not want to hear excuses.

And now there was a
carrot dangling in front of him. The Gola League was to
be renamed to Vauxhall Conference - and the champions
would earn an automatic place in League Division Four!
Stan Flashman wanted that - as did Barry and everyone
else at Barnet. But Stan was the boss and he expected to
get what he wanted...

New Season

The 86/87 season started
uncharacteristically well. Three games in saw them top of
the Conference, including a 3-1 win over Maidstone. Barry
was named manager of the month, which inevitably meant
Barnet's form dropped. They crashed out of the FA Cup
qualifiers with a 2-0 defeat at home to minnows, Dulwich
Hamlet. They soon bounced back, however, with two 5-1
victories over Gateshead and old bogy side - Boston.

With their top position
restored they went into December with more victories
until Maidstone beat them 1-0. Now in second place they
played Enfield at home on Boxing Day. An almost
record-breaking crowd of 4130 witnessed a 1-0 victory.
This was soon followed by a 3-0 victory on the return at
Southbury Road on New Years Day.

Barnet continued their
excellent form throughout January and February. They also
reached the quarterfinals of the FA Trophy, taking three
matches to eliminate Boston. Unfortunately they were
knocked out by Fareham, losing 1-0. The winning goal was
scored by Andy Bye, which led to the headline in the
Barnet Press "Bye Bye Wembley". This setback
was accompanied by two home defeats and various draws.

The other contenders for
the title - Scarborough - were still piling on the
points. In the end it was not to be. Barnet could not
catch up with Scarborough and the Yorkshire side became
the first team to enjoy automatic promotion to the
league.

Flashman and Fry were
not disheartened, however, and boasted how they had
scored more goals than all the other teams and had the
highest attendances. Steve Whitworth, originally side
signed by Thompson, was appointed assistant-manager - his
input over the next few seasons contributed much to the
team's success to come.

Next Instalment

Here is a sneak
preview...

The 88/89 season was
Barnet's centenary season. The side had been rebuilt
during the close-season. The selling of players continued
throughout the start of the season, including some
spectacular six-figure sums. These were largely replaced
with a series of loans and free-transfers. Although there
were mutterings on the terraces as to what was going on,
things only came to a head when Nicky Evans, known to
some as "God", was sold to Wycombe for
£32,000...